Prospective Graduate Students

﻿Our current graduate students are comprised of approximately 100 MS students and 100 PhD students, and are a vibrant community and the heart of our department. These bright and talented students come to Boulder from as far away as Italy and Iran, and from all across the US, and are preparing to be successful engineering professionals for the 21st century. They come to the CU ME department because of our reputation as a Tier 1 research institution; our connections with the University of Colorado Anschutz medical school (a top 10 medical school in the US); collaboration with national laboratories, such as NIST, NREL and others; our outstanding faculty, who are leaders in their fields; and the encouragement and support they receive in an environment which sets no limits on innovation.

Research

Outstanding Students

ME is home to outstanding graduate students:

7 NSF Fellows

2 Whitaker Fellows

1 Fulbright Fellow

4 Recipients of the Dean's Graduate Student Research Grants

The average GPA for incoming PhD students is 3.64/4.0

The average quantitative GRE score for incoming students is 163/170

108 PhD and 75 MS students

Research in the Department of Mechanical Engineering harnesses state-of-the-art experimental, theoretical, and computational approaches to expand the frontiers of technology​​​​​​​​​​, while advancing fundamentals in the underlying disciplines of fluid and solid mechanics, thermal engineering, materials science and engineering.

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Research is conducted by 26 tenure-line faculty with degrees from such prestigious institutions as MIT, Stanford and CalTech, along with outstanding graduate and undergraduate students through both interdisciplinary research centers and individual faculty research programs. Ten ME faculty have received prestigious early career awards from the NSF, DOD, NASA, EPA, and NIH.

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Department Facts

Funding

All PhD applicants are considered for Teaching Assistant (TA) funding as part of the admission process, and most PhD students are subsequently funded on Research Assistantships beginning the summer after their first academic year.​

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The department typically recruits 20-30 Ph.D. students annually with guaranteed assistantships, which include a tuition waiver. Occasionally MS students are supported with research assistantship while such an opportunity needs to be sought by the students from individual faculty members. Military students are eligible for in-state tuition (more info).

The 2011 NRC Assessment (latest available) ranked ME in the range of the top 9-19 U.S. PhD programs in their regression-based quality rating of 127 mechanical engineering programs. Further evaluations of the NRC data by www.phds.org ranked ME 11th based on the regression quality criteria.

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Research awards in the department reached a high of $7.2M in FY 2012. Proposals written in FY2012have already resulted in excess of $3M in awards.

ME is 30th out of 165 U.S. graduate programs in the 2014 U.S. News and World Report rankings.

Admissions/Funding

If you are a PhD applicant interested in funding, submit your application as early as possible. All PhD applicants are considered for funding.

Domestic Applicants

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Apply by the early deadline, December 1, 2015, and your application fee will be waived. Simply fill out your application online and indicate that you will pay by “check or money order,” and your fee will be waived. Please note that this fee waiver ONLY applies to Domestic PhD students who submit the application by 12/1/15.

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Deadlines

PhD Fall Only:
Early Deadline: December 1, 2015
Final Deadline: January 15, 2016

Assistanships

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A number of Teaching Assistant (TA) and Research Assistant (RA) positions are available in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. In order to qualify for these positions the student must ​​​apply​and be admitted to the Ph.D. program. The department typically recruits 20-30 Ph.D. students annually with guaranteed assistantships, which include a tuition waiver. Occasionally MS students are supported with research assistantships. Such an opportunity needs to be sought by the students from individual faculty members. There is no funding offered as part of MS admissions.

TAs and RAs are typically set at a 50% appointment during the fall and spring semesters. RAs may be paid during the summer at a greater appointment – the percentage appointment is decided upon by the faculty member providing the research assistantship. The annual stipend ranges from $24,780 to $33,600 (based on AY 14-15 rates) depending on the amount of summer RA support.

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Additional Mechanisms of Employment

In addition to or in lieu of assistanships, graduate students can be employed by the University of Colorado through multiple routes. Additional information can be found at the Graduate School website.

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Fellowships All applicants are strongly encouraged to apply for national fellowships (NSF, NIH, etc.). A detailed list of national fellowships is provided​here.

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Graders are assigned by the Graduate Committee to classes which require additional grading support. Graders are generally assigned to a maximum number of hours per week during the semester and paid hourly. This type of position does not cover tuition or any other expenses. Graders performing lab work must fulfill all University of Colorado requirements for lab work as described below.

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Independent Study can be performed for graduate credit but not for pay. This is a position where you work with a faculty member to complete a research project and receive a grade at the completion of the project. Independent study students working in a laboratory environment must fulfill all University of Colorado requirements for lab work as described below.

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Financial Aid can provide an alternative means of support. Please see the FAQ page for further information.

Please Note: Your application must be submitted online by the deadline. Additional materials may be received after the deadline, however, your application will not be considered complete and sent to committee for review until ALL application materials are received.

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Application materials include: application, application fee, statement of purpose, official transcripts from ALL post-secondary institutions attended (including community college courses, courses taken for college credit during high school, and study abroad coursework - even if this coursework shows as transfer credit on another transcript), official GRE scores (general test), 3 letters of recommendation, and TOEFL scores, if applicable.

Late applications are not accepted and the application fee is non-refundable.